Sometimes We Need To Laugh At Ourselves

Yesterday, as I was going through my Facebook feed, I kept coming across a comic that was created by The Oatmeal. I read through it, had a good laugh, and shared it with my running friends. The creator of the comic really hit the nail on the head when it comes to some common distance runner stereotypes. I was happy to see so many runner’s sharing the comic with each other in the the different running groups that I participate in. One of the things I like most about the runners I know, is that they have a healthy sense of humor and they can appreciate a good joke made at their expense due to their passion for distance running. Most runners know they are a little unbalanced when it comes to their running and we wear that fact like a badge. Sometimes, we all need to laugh at ourselves.

The Oatmeal comic got me thinking about other runner stereotypes. I have listed a few below along with some portions of The Oatmeal’s comic and a video the does a great job of illustrating what a passionate distance runner sounds like to the average person. Enjoy!

Runners love their window decals. 26.2. 13.1 3.1. We don’t care what distance the sticker is promoting, we just want people to know that we have run it. Below is a picture of the back window of my car. I’m pretty sure that I the message comes through loud and clear; I am a runner.

My friend, Tyson, that I worked with directly for three years, loves the bumper sticker below. Tyson definitely got tired of hearing about my running exploits over the years, so he wanted to promote the fact that he doesn’t run.

Below is a rotten-e-card that shares the sentiment of the 0.0 bumper sticker. Let’s face it, most people think that those of us that willfully participate in a 26.2 mile race aren’t playing with a full deck mentally.

Runners constantly think and talk about running. How many times have you been driving in your car and you see a runner out on the road and wish that you were out there with them or that you could trade places? You’re not alone!

Most runners I know have a reputation of being cheap about almost every purchase they make except for race entry fees.

Most runners have overcome any fear about using a public restroom or a porta-pottie due to their time spent at race start and finish lines and running along park trails. When the urge to go hits you and you’re 15 miles from home, you use what is available to you without complaint.

Runners regularly ignore pains in our bodies that tell us to take a break and doctors recommendations to keep running at all costs.

From The Oatmeal comic that inspired this post…

The definition above seems accurate, but somehow those of us that are addicted to running wouldn’t want to be anywhere else on race day than up at the crack of dawn to stand around in the cold with some of our running friends before running for three to four hours. I’m prone to saying to my groups that I pace in half marathons, “Just think of all those other suckers that are still in bed right now. This is a much better way to spend your morning!”

We’ve all seen these over-accessorized runners at every race. Hell, we may even be one of the over-accessorized.

I’m one of the worst offenders on the course when it comes to the “sprint-choke”. I hate slowing down at aid stations and regularly end up choking from my lack of coordination while drinking on the run.

Yup, I’m guilty of sprinting to the finish of a marathon. Even if I have bonked hard during the race, I want to finish with a good kick. I have to look good for my race photo!

All of my running friends can relate to the comic above. All we talk about at the end of the race is when we are racing again and how we can improve on our performance from the race we just completed, no matter how much pain we are in.

Finally, the video below perfectly captures how runners sound when speaking to their non-runner colleagues.

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